I think DA hit the nail right on the head... he said what many already know. Couple more thoughts on this... yes he's got PR for the idea. See the link below and they talked about it on Today Show where all the people on the show said they wouldn't do it and one said they thought it was gross. Now this is the kind of PR you see that can be very negative as well... people think its a naked haunted house because of all the press. Then the haunts themselves lose their identity they lose their main purpose and association with Halloween. I could care less how much press he gets because when he planned this he probably knew he'd get a lot of press... the whole idea is creepy and screams sex offender city. There is nothing what so ever right about this especially if you own and operate a successful attraction then attempting something that will turn off so many wouldn't even be considered.

I heard that his attraction has been losing attendance over the years, so yeah why not do something crazy to spike people talking about it... great but having people run around naked sends the wrong message to the community the people you rely on for ticket sales. I can see it now...

Someone says to someone... lets go to that haunt and another person says isn't that the naked haunt, yeah, i'm not doing that... lets go to Bates Motel, Eastern State, Field of Screams, Penhurst Asylum you know a place where you don't go through naked and is scarier. This attraction will give the entire event a bad rap... you see when you read through the PRESS you guys think is so great, they don't talk about his hayride, his other attractions NOPE just the NAKED STUFF.

Perhaps all this wouldn't be a deal if this wasn't coming from what seems like a generation long president of the industries' association, the one supposed to be our leader. Also the fact he has a personal reputation of being a super heavy drinker and can be seen in photos dancing on top the zombie army bus like a teenager and being very flirtatious creepy old man vibe etc. seeing and hearing that, then hearing he's doing this nude things just seems seedy and classless. All hail the president and leader of an industry that wonders why it doesn't get much respect.DA

Creepy old man vibe? Drinks too much? Really?

This is your leader leading--he's found a way to exploit a TV series, generate interest in a haunt, and have some fun.

Should he instead, put on some Sansabelt slacks, pop on a shawl and insist on dark rides with static props and funhouse mazes like in the good old days? Should he act old simply because you want him to?

Dancing on a bus and having some lascivious fun! Oh!No! Whatever shall we do!?!

Teen scoop, folks, we are not a 'respectable' industry--as the dog prop flap should have told you. We keep track of people who've vomited or soiled themselves in our haunts as a badge of pride. We gut people, mutilate people and rip demonic babies from pregnant women's loins--all for the thrill of our customers. We enact the most vile scenes we can get away with so that we can be the best, the scariest and the most visited. Respectable for us is giving good value to our customers without killing them(though we will gladly pretend that we have).

However well we clean up, there are people in the communities we serve that loathe us(and if we can use that loathing to our advantage, we do!) We are tolerated, not embraced.

To the business community we are a strange fringe industry populated by freaks and weirdos--and that's what we'll always be.

Because the moment we cease to be that will be the moment our industry dies.

Jack you're wrong. The industry can and should be perceived better why embrace the bottom feeder mentality and act like you can't evolve beyond that? Look at the most successful people in this business. They aren't the goofy looking carnie folk of haunters of days gone by these guys are businessmen who could excel in other types of business. Unlike some haunters they choose to do this its not like that's all they can do with their lives. You accepting this classless behavior makes you an enabler. Just because it can get you pr doesn't mean its a good thing. I mean there IS SUCH A THING AS POSITIVE PR after all.

Jack did you even read what I said... think for just one second here. The only thing they are talking about is the naked haunted house not anything else about the haunt. That is the only press he's getting... what do you think 99 people out of 100 are going to say about doing that... AHHHHH NO THANKS!

So the press you are getting is slanted negative everything you read is slanted negative, Pat himself admitted he's taking some backlash. So my point is and I'm 110% right on this ... the focus where his bread and butter is the haunted itself and no one is talking about that they are talking about a naked haunted house which almost NO one is going to do.

When people now think of his haunted house they'll think nah we'll skip that because we aren't going naked...

Have you ever heard the word 'stereotype' or 'typecast' how many times have you heard an actors say they won't do a second horror movie or they won't do a horror movies or they won't do this or that kind of movie to avoid being typecast. Was Linda Blair typecast? Did she have a career after Exorcist??? What I think he's doing here is typecasting his haunt he's attaching bad karma to everything they've done in the past... he can come back later and say it worked out but I'll know different.

I know that this was a really bad idea because it is... and I say to ANY haunt owner out there if you think its so great where is your naked haunted house? Enough said...

Larry, I'm pretty sure that the majority of Jack's post was aimed at the personal attacks made by DarkAnal. It really is over the top, and shameful to be talking about a man on such a personal level. Like the idea or hate the idea, the personal allegations have no place on the internet.

HALLOWEEN represents pumpkins, fall leaves, Trick or Treat, Ghost Stories and having fun being afraid. It has a family vibe and the seasons arrival is what puts bread on ALL Of our Tables.
The Second concept HORROR runs the gamut from classic monsters all the way to the most vile torture porn out there.

Stick too close to HALLOWEEN and your event seems tame - a show for kids only. Dive too deep into HORROR of the vile sort and you alienate a huge audience - the non horror fan haunted house going public (your biggest possible group of guests)

So what to do? Well obviously in a perfect world if you can create a show that is amazing, very scary but not nasty enough to drive off 75% of your possible business.

There are those that can pull off an extreme show and still do well, like Dead Acres and the House of Shock, but they are the exception not the rule. Also both shows in question are just flat out amazing attractions, with sets, lighting and productions at the top of the game. I think they do well in spite of some of what they do (extreme content) not because of it IMHO.

So why would someone choose extreme content? Either because they think it will help their business or they really like nasty stuff. Well the ONLY way it could help your business is to carve out a niche audience in a competitive market - because limiting possible attendees to a hard core group only is not doing your event any favors.

That leads us to a new form of “entertainment” abduction simulations. These events pretend to be Haunted Houses but they really are not. Guests sign waivers and are restrained, groped, forced to see and do disgusting things etc. Well with a VERY small group that might want to do this sort of thing, high probability of lawsuits, very slow to non existent throughput, they sound to me like a terrible business model. Unless the producer really likes torturing people why? This sounds like something for the BDSM crowd only. If it is for press… do you really want that sort of press? That when people come to your haunt they get tied up and grabbed? Will they be send their 15 year olds to you? No.

Now on to The Naked Haunt Tour. This naked thing is not really extreme, it is just flat out weird. It doesn’t seem to have anything to do with HALLOWEEN or HORROR, other that the fact it is creepy in an unsavory way. As a business choice, it will get crazy press, but it will most likely degrade the family business this place gets - imagine being the parent explaining to your pre teens WHY this haunted houses producer is doing this… What do you say? Weird weird weird idea. And NO you cannot go.

Listen I think you can do what ever you want with your haunted house - I think Haunts are like movies go ahead and make your own movie - it can be a scary or nasty or traditional as you have the skill and money to make it….

But if you do anything too crazy it WILL effect us, your neighbors. We WILL have to explain why you are the way you are to the press when they ask….

And I don’t know what we are going to say other than… NOT US! There is a reason summer blockbusters are rated PG not R. I would rather have my Haunted House be the Lord of the Rings rather than Hostel any day!

Larry, I'm pretty sure that the majority of Jack's post was aimed at the personal attacks made by DarkAnal. It really is over the top, and shameful to be talking about a man on such a personal level. Like the idea or hate the idea, the personal allegations have no place on the internet.

Over the top? Allegations? You don't get out much do you? If you knew the industry and Patrick's exploits in particular, nothing I said were allegations. Ask around and you'll hear the same from first hand accounts of his drinking and frat boy partying, etc. all I'm saying is based on what is known of him this haunt falls in line with his personality. Be offended if in lying mike, not when I'm telling the truth.

Over the top? Allegations? You don't get out much do you? If you knew the industry and Patrick's exploits in particular, nothing I said were allegations. Ask around and you'll hear the same from first hand accounts of his drinking and frat boy partying, etc. all I'm saying is based on what is known of him this haunt falls in line with his personality. Be offended if in lying mike, not when I'm telling the truth.

DA

I could have comunicated that better. By over the top, what I really meant was, that it was completely irrelevant to the topic. Over the top in that it was a personal attack. If you have a problem with someone, any kind of problem, use the proper channels. If someone has personally done you wrong, approach them directly. If they do something that you disapprove of, keep it to yourself, or at least among your closest friends. The internet is a terrible place to air out dirty laundry and to make personal attacks. It is "seedy and classless." Look, I get it, you don't like Pat, you don't approve of Pat's life style, and you don't approve of the way Pat runs his business. I think that we all got that. I agree with you that this is something that I wouldn't do in my haunt, what I don't agree with is this campaign to smear someone. I'm pretty sure that there is an anti-bullying campaign going on in the Haunt industry right now, and I am pretty sure that many of the posts on this thread would qualify as cyber-bullying, or at least some very distasteful gossiping with no other purpose than to harm another person. There are many times that I am ashamed of the Haunt industry, and it is not because of stunts like naked and afraid, it is because of the smearing, the gossiping, and the bullying that takes place right here on Hauntworld.

We better grab out pitch forks and tell this small business owner what to do, because it's our job! It's immoral, despite the fact we run haunted attractions that depict murder, enslavement, kidnapping, and sometimes irreverence.

What moral basis exists where one can complain about voluntary, controlled and safe nudity as a PR stunt but fully accept haunts that show so many acts that have a basis.

IRONY.

If anyone feels like responding to my post, I won't be responding in turn. This entire thread is ironic trolling.